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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · patient · coach · bay · race · stand · object · chest

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. cell — a phone
  4. race — a contest
  5. object — to protest
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. race — the arms race
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. object — an aim
  12. cell — in biology
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. race — humankind
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. stand — to bear
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. object — a thing
  24. patient — calm and waiting

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com